Reserve=Infanterie=Regiment Nr. 20

[bob lembke]

A couple of years ago I bought a manuscript diary of a sergeant of RIR Nr. 20, 9. Kompagnie, covering the period from mobilization to late October 1914, when he was wounded and evacuated to Berlin. It includes the names of many fellow soldiers, in many cases with their addresses in Germany. It is about 80 pages and written in a mix of Suetterlin and Kurrent that is very much like my grand-father's writing. They were in the same army corps in Belgium, III. Reservekorps. I started working on it recently and I have it 95% transliterated into modern German and about 20% translated into English. It is quite interesting; in particular it depicts a complex picture of the relationships and interaction between the German soldiers and the Belgian civilians.

Is there a unit history of RIR Nr. 20, and/or perhaps of its higher-level units, 6. Reserve=Division or III. RK?

I might publish this diary, perhaps facing pages of a faximile of an original page and on the other side my modest English translation of that page, with a section of notes and commentary. If anyone has a research interest in this material let me know. I will make sure that this resource will not be lost to other students of the war.

Bob Lembke

[Chip]

Bob,

Chris Boonzaire might have a use for it on his website. I know he likes to use actual eye-whitness accounts to accompany his articles.

Chip

[bob lembke]

I am certainly open to Chris using some of it if he wishes. Still grinding away at the text, and building notes, research footnotes, and an index of soldiers mentioned by name in the text or in an address table that the author/narrator also included. Have the addresses of about 27 of the soldiers, have looked some up in the 1914 Berlin Address Book. Am at about 143 pages, mostly double-spaced.

Again, anyone know of a unit history for RIR Nr. 20, or 5. Reserve Division, 6. Reserve Division, or III. RK?

I just did a passage where the author and his company is in the front line trench near one of the Antwerp forts, and the fort is being bombarded by a 42 cm battery behind him, he describes this; while I know from my grand-father's letters that he was in the battery firing on the fort, writing a letter to my father, still a school kid, also describing the bombardment.

At the end of the diary the author, in severe fighting on the Yser Canal, is shot in the hand, but quite badly, and is evacuated back to Berlin. Interesting that the rail evacuation was so organized that his wife was able to know which train and Berlin station he was coming in on, and was waiting on the platform for him. Gutes deutsches Ordnung. Not sure if he ever fought again.

Bob

[Richie B]

Bob

Have a look a the pdf file here -

Division Histories

Gives outline histories of all German WW1 divisions - quite a useful resource.

Downloadable as well.

Regards

Richie

[Ulsterman]

Does the CD Regt. History chap have one for the 20 RIR?

Chris posted a link to him a few weeks back. (Where oh where?)

[Naxos]

Does the CD Regt. History chap have one for the 20 RIR?

Chris posted a link to him a few weeks back. (Where oh where?)

No, but here is the link:

http://www.military-books.de.vu/

[bob lembke]

Gentlemen:

Thanks for the input. I am familiar with the "251 Divisions" book, but the level of detail that I need is much finer than it has; I need details of village to village fighting, while "251 Divisions" can only devote about a page or two per division over four years.

I have about 20 of Patrick's CD histories. I skim his listing every few months to see if he had new ones I could use. I have done so since I bought the diary, so I assumed that he did not have one. Being a reserve unit, there is less likelyhood that there was one written, but you never know, all it often took was one determined veteran, and supportive comrades. Without looking it up, I bet that there was a history of Infanterie=Regiment Nr. 20.

There is a book listing the unit histories that were written, written, I believe, in the 1980's by a German woman, but that book itself was expensive (perhaps a fit subject for Patrick, but on second thought there would be copyright issues), so I never bought it. I think it was about $80 6-7 years ago.

Hardy, thanks for your help. I assume you are saying that one was never written. Or, no, Patrick does not have a CD???

Thanks, everyone.

Bob Lembke

Edited July 20, 2009 by bob lembke

[Naxos]

Bob, I'm not sure about a published history for that Rgt., but perhaps an Ehrenliste or a partial history could be found.

[Ulsterman]

Glenn has a comprehensive index of all regimental histories. i think there is also one at the IWM (interlibrary loan anyone?).

Try the Trenches on the web too-maybe Egbert has one.